Day 3 in Japan: Kyoto

We took the shinkansen from Shin-Osaka station to Kyoto Station. The ride was short, roughly half an hour. 













Did you know that Nintendo's headquarters is located right in Kyoto? Before reaching our hotel, we decided to make a pit stop there. My brother is a huge fan. 

After snapping a bunch of pictures in front of the Nintendo headquarters, we made our way to our hotel to drop off our bags. We booked one night's stay at Hotel MyStays Kyoto Shijo. For a more in-depth review, check my review on TripAdvisor. I really liked this hotel. The complimentary green tea lattes were delicious!

A bonus from this hotel was that they sell one day bus passes right from the reception desk. Unlike Osaka or Tokyo, getting around Kyoto is best done by busing. The Kyoto City buses bring you close to most major tourist sites in the city. The bus stops have the routes and schedules listed. With the addition of the handy Google Maps on my smart phone, I was able to venture just about anywhere I wanted. 

Our first tourist attraction was Kyoto's Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku-ji temple).  It is absolutely stunning in person. Too bad I couldn't go in. The grounds were pretty large, with little shops along the path. I was able to buy some charms and bring back to the States as souvenirs. No joke, they had charms for EVERYTHING.



We then hopped on a bus to get to Kyoto's Nijo Castle. To be honest, I was not that excited about this place. The pictures on TripAdvisor looked drab. The most I was expecting was to walk around a museum like castle, staring at old artifacts that hold no relevance to me. I was expecting to be bored. I'm glad I went in with low expectations because I was completely blown away. Do you know why the internet lacks awesome pictures or videos of this place? It's because no photography is allowed. Wish I could show you guys how incredible this castle was, but you'll just have to see it for yourselves. The layouts of the grounds and the castle are like mazes. The extremely detailed ceilings, floors, and room screens were breath taking. I've visited western style mansions before. They don't stand a chance against this castle when it come to aesthetics (at least to me).

After that, we went to Kyoto's Imperial Palace. While the commute there was fairly simple, we got lost on palace grounds hahaha. The palace is located inside a ridiculously huge park. That's alright, we eventually found our way out because we're survivors.

At night, we roamed Shijo-Dori. It's a lively and popular district loaded with shopping centers. I was fortunate enough to stay at a hotel literally just up the street from this area; I didn't even plan it.

Day 2 in Japan: Osaka

After a restless night due to jet lag, it was time to depart for Osaka! The plan was to explore Osaka in a day and spend a night there. Boy, was that a journey! A very long journey. Good thing my brother and I woke up super early to get a head start. 

Form Instructions

Right after check-out, we thought it would be a smart idea to utilize Japan's TA-Q-Bin service. It is essentially a deliver service, much like UPS or FedEx in the US. We used TA-Q-Bin to send our luggage to our hotel in Kyoto, which we planned to stay at in 2 days. This service is known for its timely deliveries and luggage usually require 24hrs to deliver. The reception desk is typically kind enough to help travelers with the delivery form, so don't worry if you don't understand Japanese. I noticed our receptionist at the Narita Excel Hotel didn't weigh our baggage, but did charge us by piece and distance. We paid about $12 US Dollars per suitcase from Narita to Kyoto, which wasn't bad at all. 

Now onto our commuting adventure!

Tokyo Station

If you plan to use public transportation or ride the shinkansen (Bullet Train) even once, it might be worth investing in a Japan Rail Pass. This is a ground transportation pass that allows you access pretty much anywhere on the Japan Rail network. I rode on the shinkansen 5 times and took the local trains daily so I saved a lot. The pass can only be used by foreigners with a foreign passport. I'm guessing it's to increase tourism in the country. This is the site my brother and I bought ours from: www.jrpass.com. Only authorized sellers can distribute these; be wary of scams.  

Front cover of pass

Stamps show # of shinkansen rides

Inside NEX

We went from our hotel in Narita to Tokyo station to get our passes. The pass gave us access on the Narita Express, bringing us to Tokyo station in about 45min. 

From there, we went straight to Shin-Osaka Station.

Hikari Shinkansen

For hotel, we stayed at the Yamatoya Honten in Osaka. They offer traditional Japanese style rooms, Ryokan, which might be something you want to try out. Check out my full review on Tripadviser. 

In our time in Osaka, we went to the Osaka Castle Park, Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan, and Doutonbori Bashi. For dinner, we ate at Mizuno, a ridiculously popular okonomiyaki joint. Yes I know it doesn't seem like we did a lot, but give us a break. We only had a day!

 This is a video of Osaka Castle Park

Mizuno's Okonomiyaki

My brother couldn't be happier in one of the many street arcades of Doutonbori Bashi

Day 1 in Japan

Waiting in terminal at Logan Airport, Boston MA

I was fed 2 meals

Coming to Japan, I had the privilege of riding on Japan Airlines. It's renowned for it's great customer service and I have to agree on this one. The stewardesses were so kind and sweet to me, to the point that I just want to hang out with them. Plus, they fed me very well, while the on-board entertainment kept me busy for the 13 hours flight.

Free Movies& Games

Ice-cream on-board!

I finally landed at Narita Airport around 4pm.

Jet lagged and sore, I called it a night and headed to the Narita Excel Hotel. This is an airport hotel that caters to a wide range of people, from families to the suits. It has a total of 4 restaurants located inside. Getting there from the airport was very easy. Outside the departures terminal is a lane for free shuttle buses to and from the hotel.

My Plan for Japan

JAPAN HERE I COME!!

Yes, in just a matter of days, I'll be flying from the US to Narita Airport!

The airline I'll be riding

There's so much to do in so little time. But I did get something accomplished today. While doing research on the exchange rates for converting US dollar bills into Japanese yen, I learned it was actually cheaper to exchange it locally before I go. 

The place I went to

And Ta-da! I have my cash. I didn't convert too much though as I figured I'll see how it goes. I can always exchange more when I get there.